The present invention can relate to systems and methods for power efficient detection of wireless networks by electronic devices.
There is a need for reducing the power consumption of various electronic devices. Specifically, there is a need for reducing the power consumption of portable electronic devices that employ relatively low-capacity batteries when detecting and communicating over wireless networks.
Portable electronic devices, such as laptop computers, wireless and cellular telephones, digital media players (e.g., music players and video players), and hybrid devices that combine telephone and media playing functionalities are known. These devices are typically configured to provide communications to a user in one or more modes. For example, a laptop computer may be configured to communicate wirelessly in accordance with various protocol standards, such as cellular, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth®. Various protocols may operate at various speeds and require various amounts of power.
One common characteristic of portable electronic devices is that, in the view of many users, they never have enough battery life. This is due to a variety of factors, including the simple fact that the devices are portable. Thus, it would be possible to extend the battery life of the devices by, for example, providing larger batteries. However, this would invariably lead to devices that are too heavy, too expensive, and too bulky. Therefore, it can be problematic if the method of detecting and communicating over wireless networks places too heavy a load on the limited amount of electrical power available to the portable devices.
In order to communicate wirelessly, some known electronic devices are equipped with receivers, transmitters, and/or transceivers for detecting a wireless network and communicating with other electronic devices in the detected network. Generally, a user must manually turn on the receiver or transceiver of the device when he or she wishes to detect a valid network for wireless communication. However, this is not convenient for the user. Alternatively, a user must constantly keep the receiver or transceiver of the device turned on when he or she wishes for the device to automatically detect a valid network for wireless communication. However, this causes the device to consume a significant amount of power (e.g., battery power of a portable electronic device).
Accordingly, what is needed are methods and systems for providing power efficient detection of wireless networks by electronic devices.